Thought to Guide Your Reading

Summary in 100 Words or Less

Job cries out to God, “Speak to me! What is my sin? You wonderfully created me! Yet if I sinned you would greatly punish me! What is my sin?"
Zophar interjects, “Who do you think you are? If God answered, you would be babbling in the ditch. Give up and repent of you evil."
Job mocks, “I’m sure you speak for all the experts, and when you die there’ll be no one left to tell us how to live" (12:2, The Message). I know how wonderful God is. Why do you defend God this way? Does he need you to defend himself?"

How Today’s Reading Contributes to the Gospel: God is Setting All Things Right

Job never accuses God of perverting justice.

Job continues to call out to God to bring charges against him. He accepts his fate though he still does not understand why it has come.

Zophar wrongly accuses Job of hiding his sin and being too stubborn to admit it.

This situation feels unsettlingly familiar to me. There have been several times I have tried to convince someone they are a sinner. Why would I do such a thing? If they cannot see where they have sinned, maybe they are correct. If I continue to press someone's sinfulness I may be perverting justice in the name of God. This is important for all Christians to understand. We do not need to defend God. God is the Creator of the universe, remember.

Job firmly derides his friends for perverting justice in God’s name.

Job’s friends do not understand what is going on. They continuously stress Job’s guilt using higher and higher theological language. Job has no other option but to mock their arrogance. It reminds me of how many non-Christians mock Christian’s arrogance on what is “obviously black and white." If things were so black and white, why do Christians need to use highly-complicated theology to get there?

About Graham

I am an ambassador of Christ at the Church of Christ at Pueblo West where I have the wonderful opportunity to work with the Elders to help the congregation actively grow spiritually. They allow me to preach for them and give me a salary to do counseling and outreach in the community. Check out our sermons page to hear recent lessons.

I recently graduated from Fuller Theological Seminary's School of Intercultural Studies where I focused my studies around the differences in Christian and non-Christian culture in the USA, Western colonialism and ways to release natives to do work in their own land, and using technology to revolutionize education in churches and schools.